Lost World Nightmare
by dolphinrain
Summary: Ned is captured and badly abused. His friends must help him recover both physically and emotionally. Rated m for torture, male rape and nudity.


LOST WORLD: NIGHTMARE

(disclaimer: I own nothing from The Lost World and am writing just for the fun of it. But I certainly wouldn't mind borrowing Malone for awhile!) This story takes place sometime in the late second season and is mostly from Ned's point of view. The rating is mature for some nudity, male rape and some torture. If you read please review. Constructive criticism welcome.

This was a nightmare. It had to be. He could never have imagined life like this. He couldn't remember a time he didn't have a blindfold over his eyes or cold metal cuffs on his wrists. Hunger and thirst had become constant companions along with the cold.

His world had shrunk to pain and humiliation along with the constant cold. He didn't remember when he'd last had on any clothing. He had stopped fighting with them, whoever they were. It was pointless as it only brought more pain.

He was once again led to the metal frame, his wrists and ankles spread to be chained. There was almost no warning before the whip stung his back. He wondered what he had done to bring this on himself. There were times early on that he had fought back. He would be whipped and sometimes left here. Sometimes there was the unbearable pain as objects were shoved into him in places objects were _NEVER_ meant to go. The first time they did that, he thought he was being split in two by a red-hot knife and he had screamed himself hoarse. He had finally humiliated himself and begged them to stop.

Then he heard a strange sound, an explosion. He knew that sound, didn't he? Then he heard angry shouts and the whipping had suddenly ceased. There were loud popping noises. Gunshots? Then there were voices calling his name. One female voice above all called him Ned. Was that _his_ name? It had been so long since he'd heard it, he had almost forgotten he had a name.

The voice was familiar as it came closer to him. There was a second female voice followed by a man's angry voice. But somehow he knew the anger wasn't directed at him.

He felt a soft hand gently caress his cheek and he nearly humiliated himself right then. How he had longed for a gentle touch instead of the fists and the whip. He felt the blindfold being undone but he couldn't open his eyes. Rough callused hands touched him and he couldn't help flinching. There was an apology and he was being lowered to the floor. His head came to rest in a soft warm lap and a moment later a blanket was laid over him. He began to sob with joy over the first warmth he'd felt in far too long.

The soft female voices were asking him to open his eyes. He couldn't! He was terrified if he did, that this warmth and gentleness would fade and he would still be trapped in his nightmare. But the voices persisted as he felt cool water on his lips. The exhausted man tried to gulp at it but another man's voice cautioned him to slow down.

Finally he couldn't resist the temptation and he carefully opened one eye. He peered into the face of a beautiful brunette. He knew her, didn't he? But something was wrong. There were tears in her eyes; he had never seen her cry. She was so strong and formidable.

He turned his head to see whose lap he was in and saw another face he knew. This was the face he'd seen in his darkest moments; her hair like the sun and eyes blue as the sky. She was smiling at him but there were tears in her eyes as well. It was her voice calling his name. Ned. That must be his name. It sounded familiar.

He wanted to comfort her. To ask what was wrong. But he couldn't form the words. He could feel darkness encroaching and at last he didn't resist as it finally welcomed him.

CHAPTER 2: Reality (small change of perspective at the end of chapter 2)

When consciousness returned, the first things he became aware of were warmth and that he was lying on something soft. He felt soft material touching his skin. Slowly he opened his eyes.

This room was familiar. This was his room, Ned's room. Fractured memories came to him as he tried to sit up. The pain from his movements made him lay back down. Images came to his mind; faces of friends old and new mixed with images he wanted to forget.

"Well, it's about time you woke up," a man's voice startled him. Roxton's voice. He looked almost fearfully at the hunter as the man came to sit in the chair beside his bed. Roxton had a cup in his hand.

"I'm sorry if I startled you, Ned," Roxton said with genuine regret.

Ned just continued to stare at him and tried to sit up again. Moving slowly so as not to startle him, Roxton helped him by propping pillows behind the journalist to lean against. Ned's eyes moved to the cup Roxton had set down.

"Are you thirsty, Ned?" Roxton held the cup out to him. The hunter saw the suspicion and took a small sip himself. "It's just water, see?"

Ned lifted a hand to take the cup. That was when he saw the bandage wrapped around his wrist. He looked down at himself and saw the myriad of bandaging wrapped around his body. That was when Ned realized that he hadn't been dreaming. A small part of him kept telling himself that it didn't really happen, that everything was just an ugly nightmare. But seeing the bandaging made reality set in and he began to sob.

_ Decorum be damned_, Roxton thought as he carefully took the younger man in his arms. He held his friend as the journalist broke down. He held him long past when Ned had calmed down.

"I'm sorry, Ned." He heard Roxton say as sleep claimed him. "I wish I could have prevented this. But I do swear that I'll help you through this however I can. You have the word of Lord John Roxton."

CHAPTER 3: MEMORIES

Ned lay awake in his bed, listening to sounds of the jungle creatures and feeling the gentle breeze coming in from his open window. He was alone for the moment and was enjoying the peace. Ever since the other explorers had brought him back to the Treehouse he was rarely left alone. He had yet to speak to them. He could tell they were trying to be patient with him, but he just couldn't seem to form the words.

The four people with him had told him repeatedly they were his friends and while he knew this was true, he still had difficulty discerning reality with his nightmare. He lost count of how many times he woke up screaming incoherently. He sometimes couldn't tell if he was in his room or still in the chains. Sometimes he would try to run, as he was caught up in his nightmare. He would push past his friends as he tried to reach the elevator. On one occasion Roxton had had to tackle him when he tried to jump over the balcony to escape.

His memories had slowly returned to him as the fog lifted from his brain. He remembered he had been near a pond when he heard children crying. When he had gone to investigate, he'd been very angry to see three young children being dragged by filthy looking men. Ned had followed the group until they had stopped to make camp. He had snuck into the camp and managed to free the children before he had been spotted. The children had gotten away but he hadn't.

The filthy men were slavers and he had just cost them a lot of money. They had told him he would pay for their loss. He had tried to fight with them, but there were too many. There had come the blindfold and the chains on his wrists. They had stripped him and forced him to march for how long he had no idea. After that he remembered only the whip, the cold and the humility. He did remember asking for water at one point. They had poured so much water down his throat, he had thought he would drown. Then they had punched his stomach until he had thrown up. He didn't ask anymore.

By the time his friends had found him he had already begun to lose his sense of reality and reason. His friends had taken care of his injuries. He had awakened while they were tending his back. Ned had buried his face in the blanket beneath him to keep from screaming. He tried to pull away when the cloth was lifted from his waist. They had seen the blood on his legs while he was still naked and knew what had happened to him. Challenger had nearly vomited when he saw the injuries.

It had been Marguerite who had been strong enough to help clean him. She tried to be as calm and gentle as she could. She had leaned in close to his ear and whispered that she understood his pain and shame. When he looked at her, he had seen someone who truly knew his pain. He had cried and she had held him until he had passed out once more.

Veronica was with him almost constantly. She read to him from his own journals. At first he couldn't even remember that he had written in them. But she persisted until he did.

She told him the children he had helped were Zanga. They had wandered from the village preoccupied with playing and chasing a small dinosaur. The explorers had found them when they had been looking for him and learned what had happened. They had returned the children to the Zanga village where Jarl and several of his best warriors had vowed to help find and rescue the journalist. Veronica told him they had tracked the slavers to a small mining camp. The Zanga and the explorers had made certain not one slaver was left alive.

Marguerite had demanded to see the leader of the slavers. She had calmly stabbed the man in the groin before she had put a bullet between his eyes. No one hurt her friend, the brunette had told him. Veronica told him she didn't think she had ever seen Roxton so angry. Raptors were not as vicious as the hunter had been with the slavers. Challenger had devised some strong explosives to destroy the camp so that nothing could ever be used from it again.

She had found Ned's belongings tossed in a corner of the room he had been tortured in. Most of his clothes were ruined but she had salvaged his boots, his Colt pistol and his watch. When she had returned the watch to him, he had nearly broken down again. He still couldn't put the watch on as his wrist was still bandaged from having been in the chains so long. The watch had been a gift from his parents just before he had left for London years ago. For now it sat safely on the stand beside his bed.

Challenger had been busy making salves for his wounds and teas to help him sleep. The scientist was at a loss over Ned's inability to speak. He could find nothing physically wrong with Ned's throat other than being sore from screaming so much. Psychosomatic injuries were beyond his expertise. Most of Ned's injuries were healing well. He reluctantly told Ned there would be a few scars on his back from the repeated whipping but none should show under his clothing.

Assai and some of the Zanga had come to help with hunting and guarding the Treehouse while the explorers were preoccupied with Ned's recovery. They had brought gifts made by the children to show their gratitude.

Marguerite had made him new clothes to replace the ones he had lost. He had nearly lost control when the soft cotton material had touched his back. He had to fight to keep from slipping back into his nightmare whenever someone touched him. That was slowly lessening and Veronica was usually there when the nightmare gripped him.

But still he couldn't talk.

CHAPTER 4: HIDING

Ned slowly began to venture out of his room. He had been terrified to step outside of his door. In here he had felt safe. No one could reach him here, no one could hurt him here. The other explorers brought him whatever he needed. They would bring his meals, drinks, clean clothes, his journals. They would smile at him and tell him what was going on outside his door. Ned had yet to answer them. He had stopped trying and none of them knew how to reach him.

Ned knew he was being silly. He knew that his friends would never hurt him. They had been nothing but as patient with him as they could be. There were no harsh words, no teasing him. He saw only concern and care on their faces.

They had even brought a tub in for him to bathe in private. He had been terrified of anyone seeing him or knowing when he was undressed. He had yet to even look at himself in a mirror.

He tried to smile at them, but it was quick and fleeting. He had tried writing in his journals but the words still wouldn't come. How could he explain how he felt? How could he explain he couldn't leave his room or even talk? He wanted to, but he couldn't stop remembering the pain the last time he had spoken brought on.

The first time Ned tried leaving his room, he had a panic attack. His knees had turned to rubber and he sank to the floor. Sometime later Veronica had brought his lunch and found him huddled on the floor beside his bed, his face buried in his hands. He pulled away violently when she touched his shoulder.

Ned saw the hurt in her eyes and was ashamed of himself for having caused it. He knew Veronica of all people would never hurt him. And he had let her hold him.

The next time, Ned tried he managed to reach the steps leading to the main area of the Treehouse. This time Roxton saw him but said nothing. He silently urged the journalist on. When Ned saw him, the journalist had made a quick smile before taking a deep breath. He gripped the railing so tight his knuckles turned white. Again the panic seized him and he had hurried back into his room. Roxton said nothing and walked away.

CHAPTER 6: COFFEE AND HEROES (Again, some changes in perspective)

It had taken time for Ned to finally leave his room. He had awaken with a start one morning. He had dreamt of his time in the trenches during the Great War and Sgt. Haskell's words had come back to him. The sergeant had reminded him he needed to live his life like it was worth something. Ned knew if he had stayed in those trenches he never would have survived. If he was going to survive now, he needed to leave his room.

So that morning after he washed and dressed, he left his room. He took one step at a time. It was slow going but he had made up his mind that once he started there was no going back. By the time he reached the top step, he had been shaking and pale but he was proud of himself.

Marguerite had been in the kitchen getting lunch ready when she saw him. She watched him quietly until he saw her. He returned the warm smile she greeted him with.

"Well done, Neddy," she told him," but are you just going to stand there or would you like a cup of coffee?" There was nothing malicious in her tone, just friendly teasing and he relaxed.

Once Ned was out of his room he didn't want to go back. Marguerite had him sit at the table and brought him a cup of hot coffee. When the other men returned to the Treehouse for their lunches, they were delighted to see him. At first Ned wanted to bolt for his room. He wasn't sure if he was ready for this but he stayed in his seat.

Ned wanted to ask where Veronica was. He hadn't seen her all day. Several times he opened his mouth to speak but quickly closed it again. Challenger saw him and placed a piece of paper and a pen on the table in front of him. The journalist looked up at him.

"Write down what you want," the scientist told him. "You need to start communicating with us, Ned. If you don't start now, you might never. None of us can do this for you. You need to do this on your own. The ones who did this won't ever hurt another soul again."

Ned knew he was right. He had to do this. He stared at the pen for several minutes as his anxiety began to rise. Finally he picked up the pen. His hand was shaking. _He was being silly_, he told himself. After all, he was a reporter, a journalist. All he wanted was to ask where Veronica was. This shouldn't be so hard. Slowly, he wrote Veronica's name and a question mark.

Challenger grinned at him as he read the single word. "She went to visit Assai. She said she'd be back around lunchtime or shortly afterwards."

Ned nodded and smiled at him. Again he picked up the pen and wrote. _"More coffee, please?"_

"I'm not the bloody waitress," Marguerite complained but she brought him a cup anyway. "Just this once. But after this you can get it yourself."

"Where's mine?" Roxton asked with a smirk.

Ned couldn't help it. He startled them when he started to laugh. _"No waitress,"_ he wrote.

The journalist moved to the balcony after lunch to clean his Colt pistol. It felt good to be doing something useful again. He knew he was going to be spending more time out of his room.

As Ned finished cleaning his weapon, he heard the elevator coming up. He smiled at the thought of seeing Veronica. But his smile faded when he saw Assai and another Zanga woman stepping off the elevator with her.

The blonde girl smiled warmly at him as she came over to him. She couldn't help giving him a small hug. Veronica gently cupped his cheek as he started to stand up.

"No, please stay, Ned," she said. "I'm so glad to see you out of your room. I've brought someone who's been asking to see you."

Marguerite and the other two men came into the area as a Zanga child cautiously stepped out of the elevator. Ned nearly did bolt out of his seat when he recognized her. Veronica gently squeezed his hand and he shakily stayed in his seat.

"This is Solana," Veronica gestured to the Zanga woman. "And this is her daughter, Jaddax. Jaddax has been asking to see you, Ned Malone."

Solana spoke to Assai for several minutes before the other woman translated. "Solana has wanted to come and thank you for saving her daughter and the other two children. The others are doing well. But Jaddax has been having bad dreams about the trouble she feels she has caused. It was her idea to chase the dinosaur that led to them and then you being captured."

Jaddax suddenly pulled away from her mother and flung her arms around Ned. The girl was babbling and crying as she hugged him. Ned grimaced slightly as her hands brushed a still tender laceration on his shoulder. But he didn't pull back or push the child away. Instead he gently returned the hug.

"She has been afraid you would not want to speak to her or be angry with her for bringing this on you," Veronica told him.

Ned gently turned the young girl's face toward him. How could this innocent child believe any of this was her fault? He shook his head and mouthed the word no. But she still was crying. He took a deep breath and finally he whispered, "Not your fault. Bad people. Not you."

For a moment no one spoke. His voice was low and hoarse from nonuse but Jaddax didn't seem to notice. She smiled at him as he brushed the tears from her cheek.

"No more bad dreams," he added as she hugged him again.

The Zanga soon got ready to leave. Jarl was waiting near the electric fence to escort the women home before it got dark. As they got into the elevator, Jaddax smiled and waved to Ned. She spoke again as the elevator was sent down. Veronica covered her own mouth and tried not to laugh until after they had gone.

"What did Jaddax say?" Roxton asked.

"She said if she has any more bad dreams, that she'll just dream that her hero will save her," Veronica said as she hugged Ned. "Ned Malone, her handsome hero."

EPILOGUE TO NIGHTMARE

Veronica helped clean up the dishes once dinner was eaten. Challenger had returned to his lab while Marguerite and Roxton were quietly arguing over whose turn it was to grind the coffee. She noticed Ned had disappeared.

It had been a long day, but an exceptionally good one. The journalist had taken huge steps today. But he finally had wanted to be alone. While he had done well, it had still been a struggle for him. He had mostly pushed past his anxiety, but finally had needed to escape to his room for a time.

Veronica decided that the rest of the kitchen could wait. She made a cup of tea and headed for Ned's room. She cautiously opened the door and peered in. He was lying on his stomach on his bed and appeared to be asleep. An open journal lay on the chair beside his bed. Veronica marked the page with a piece of ribbon and closed it.

As she leaned into kiss his forehead, she whispered," You're my hero, too." And she kissed his cheek. For the first time in weeks, his sleep seemed peaceful and she was grateful.

FINISHED

Well that's it. I hope it was fun to read. I certainly had fun writing it. Ned may have been slightly out of character but no one can be tortured without being affected by it.

(I did tell Santa that I'd like Ned under my Christmas tree wearing just a little red bow!)

Thanks go to Gemini Explorer for all his advice and encouragement.


End file.
